Copperhead

Copperhead, Agkistrodon contortrix

The very well-known, and misunderstood Copperhead is a common venomous snake found in most Central and Eastern states. In North Texas at the least, if there is a story of a venom-filled snake bite, this is the likely culprit. The reason has nothing to do with temperament, but rather environment. The Cottonmouth, also known as the Water Moccasin, is a semi-aquatic snake and therefore is found near streams or ponds. Rattlesnakes can survive a variety of habitats as a subfamily, but individual species often have strict specifications. The Copperhead is the most versatile of the three front-fanged venomous snakes in the area. Their beautiful leafy pattern and brown coloration provides excellent cover when slithering among the leaves, whether at a nature preserve or a simple backyard; however, of the three snakes they are one of the most laid back. As with any animal, snake or not, any provoking will result in retaliation, even a simple gesture of grabbing a rake next to the near-invisible snake.

The issue lies in the commonality of this snake in urban areas, and the lack of education on common snake safety. Snakes will follow the mice which will follow the human, which means you may easily find a Copperhead hanging out near the garden hose. With the warm winter the majority of the United States has experienced this past year, mice populations have exploded beyond normal which also means more frequent snake sightings. The phrase "look before you leap" applies to snakes in that you should always look before you step over a log, grab your gardening tools, or even kick aside a branch. Always remember, you can never selectively kill one species, and they have an important job in nature, one that is critical this year especially if you want to avoid Lyme disease.

The lack of respect snakes get, especially if venomous, has always been a sore issue with me. More often than not, someone will either kill it or suggest killing it. Any encounter the public has with a venomous snake is exaggerated, with talks of how the snake would easily have attacked or how the snake actually chased them. Discounting the fact that a small snake chasing a grown man triple his size is ridiculous, the most important myth is the assumption that if it is a venomous snake, then it obviously is aggressive. I can tell you from personal experience with Copperheads that I truly mean it when I say they are generally pretty mellow. After literally almost stepping on a relatively large one (he moved to avoid it which is how I noticed, still I was in striking distance) and not even getting a threatening pose, I stand by that. The one in the photo and a different one earlier this week were smaller, and didn't particular care to be moved off the trail, but also did not coil for strike either. This was done, of course, with previous training on how to handle hot snakes.

As you can likely tell, this simple picture from my phone, from the second Copperhead I've seen in less than a week (quite common in my line of work) was just what I was waiting for. I was so excited by this as I actually had a phone and no concerned patron with me so whipping out my camera was acceptable. I couldn't wait to finally have a chance to clear up the misconceptions of these snakes! I really hope I did.